The ‘£5 minimum spend’ restriction imposed by thousands of corner shops could be on the way out after a study found that customers hate it. Half of all shoppers say they are irritated by the practice because increasing numbers don’t carry cash nowadays. And one in five say they actively walk out of a shop that won’t take card or phone payments for under a fiver.
Many small stores have introduced the minimum spend because the high prices charged by firms who provide card payment machines and services – often upwards of 4% and sometimes with a minimum fee. A service has now been launched by Lopay which can process card payments for free.
The irritating restriction has been a part of everyday life over the last decade since contactless became the primary form of payment in the UK. Most Brits have been left feeling the annoyance of approaching the till and having items scanned before being turned away as they try to pay with a card
The study of 2,000 adults in the UK also found one in three customers said they didn’t know traders lost money on each transaction. Richard Carter, founder of Lopay, said: “It’s important for vendors to be earning their money and actually seeing all of it, not handing over a minimum of around 4% to card companies.
“The research shows how many customers go into shops and are left trying to bring their totals up to the notorious minimum spend price.”